Recommended action

Europe wants internet companies to filter all of your uploads. An upload filter can’t recognize your legal use of copyrighted content - like parody, citations and also memes. Stand up for copyright in the digital age and tell a member of the European Parliament that we need copyright laws that promote competition and innovation online!

Recommended action

It’s time to take the next step to extend EDRi’s reach and efficacy. We are inviting you to apply to become a member of our Board. As an EDRi Board Member, you’ll help shape the future of the organisation and advance our mission to promote and protect human rights in the digital environment.

Journalism is under pressure. So, democracy itself is too. Coincidence? The Boot Camp "European Journalism in the Digital Age" is a first aid kit and survival guide for European journalists and others in the digital age to protect themselves from legal, regulatory, digital and physical threats, and to head off trouble before it starts. Submit your application by 5 March 2018!

Recommended action

Do you have national-level experience in the area of law or policy? Would you like to step up your policy and advocacy activities? The Wikimedia DE policy team in Brussels seeks support of activists, academics, and policy experts from all over Europe that are or would like to become a part of Wikimedia community.

Check out our list of upcoming public consultations of importance for digital rights and respond to them - this is your opportunity to influence the future legislation at an early stage, in the EU and beyond!

Recommended action

When you visit a website, online trackers and the site itself may be able to identify you. Check with EDRi member Electronic Frontier Foundation's Panopticlick how well your browser and add-ons protect you against online tracking techniques!

Recommended reading

Recommended action

Registration for the Privacy Camp is now open! If you want to attend the event, please send an email to registrations(at)edri.org, including your first and last name. Make sure to register as soon as possible as places are limited for this free event on 23 January 2018 in Brussels!

The nonprofit Mozilla Foundation is currently looking for an Internet Health Outreach Coordinator. It is a full time position, ideally located in Berlin, but remote working around the EU would also be fine.

Recommended action

Privacy Camp 2018, "Speech, settings and [in]security by design", will discuss the challenges to freedom of speech online and the potential of a digital public sphere, and the security of devices and infrastructure. Propose your panel by 20 November!

Recommended action

Donate to EDRi member Privacy International's crowdfunding campaign and support their ongoing court case against the British government hacking our devices. The campaign will end on Thursday, 2 November!

Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) will soon be voting on whether or not to approve mass content filtering, and proposals to charge fees for links. With your help, we can put a stop to this disastrous duo of copyright policies in the controversial draft Copyright Directive. Call your representative in the European Parliament Committee on Civil Liberties and ask them to vote against these rules!

Recommended action

Join us on Friday 13 October in Brussels to witness who will be crowned the ultimate privacy villain of 2017 in the Belgian Big Brother Awards! We nominated the European trend of "state hacking". Don't forget to vote for your favourite!

Recommended action

Join us for the annual Freedom not Fear barcamp in Brussels on 6-9 October 2017! Internet and human rights activists from all over Europe will meet to work for freedom in the digitised world. You can register for travel allowances until 22 September!

Recommended action

Name a hero who has protected the principles of freedom online or a villain who has worked to undermine them! EDRi member Access Now is looking for nominations for its fourth annual Heroes & Villains Awards.

Recommended action

The Digital Rights Fund is a peer-driven programme that funds work for digital rights in Europe. Grant proposals need to be formally submitted by an EDRi member organisation, but the programme encourages collaboration and cooperation with other civil society and civil liberty organisations.

European Digital Rights fights for your right to privacy, freedom of expression, modernisation of copyright rules, net neutrality, and against mass surveillance. Join the team of Digital Defenders - support our work with a donation!

Recommended action

Join EDRi members Digitalcourage, AK Vorrat and FIfF on 29 June in protest at the German Parliament against the restart of telecommunications data retention in Germany! Providers would have been obliged to start implementing the new law on 1 July, but things are moving: one provider was exempted after launching an appeal, citing incompatibility with EU law, several constitutional complaints are pending, and the Federal Network Agency said it will not impose fines for providers, prompting other large providers to announce they will not start storing the data. The protest will call for an EU-wide ban, demand an end to this uncertainty for users about the surveillance they are under, and put pressure on politicians to end this Schrödinger-esque state.

Recommended action

Take control over the traces you leave behind online and make sure your personal information is as secure as possible. Check out these tips for protecting your privacy online, or join a free hands-on workshop at the PrivacyCafé in Brussels on 28 June 2017: https://www.privacytraining.org/en/public-events/

Recommended action

Digital-born Media Carnival is a four-day event gathering more than hundred of online media representatives, information explorers and digital rights enthusiasts to discuss fake news, ethics, sustainability, business models, creativity, innovation in reporting, manipulation, the online media market, surveillance, privacy, post-truth... It will take place on 14-18 July in Kotor, Montenegro. You can apply until 1 June.

Recommended action

There is still some time for you to respond to the European Commission's public consultation on whistleblower protection. Whistleblowing is essential to our democracy, safeguarding the public interest. Make sure your voice is heard and share your view before 29 May 2017.

Recommended action

On 5 May, six organisations in business and government will definitely not be amused, because they will receive a Big Brother Award from EDRi member Digitalcourage. Already for several years, the award speeches have been translated into English. Now, for the second time, also the livestream of the gala will be available with interpretation. Watch the German BBA 2017 live from 18:00 local time (16:00 UTC) on 5 May 2017!

CopyCamp, an annual conference about social and economic aspects of copyright in Europe, will take place on 28-29 September 2017 in Warsaw, Poland. EDRi member the Modern Poland Foundation is launching an Open Call for Speakers and invites you to participate.

Recommended action

EDRi member EFF is collecting stories from people about the moment digital privacy first started mattering in their lives. Help spur a broader public conversation about the value of privacy in our digital world: Watch the video and add to the conversation with a blogpost, an article, or a short video, and tweet using the hashtag #privacystory!"

Recommended action

Sign the petition and support the campaign to ensure the freedom to teach without breaking the law! This campaign is part of COMMUNIA’s project Copyright Reform for Education, and it aims to raise awareness about copyright in education and the need to reform the copyright system among educational institutions and educators.

Recommended action

Submit your nomination for the MIT Media Lab Disobedience Award: a person or group engaged in an extraordinary example of disobedience for the benefit of society. The Award honours work that impacts society in positive ways, and that is consistent with the principles of non-violence, creativity, courage, and taking responsibility for one’s actions. This disobedience is not limited to specific disciplines; examples include scientific research, civil rights, freedom of speech, human rights, and the freedom to innovate.

Recommended action

Freedom of expression is under unprecedented pressure, even in countries with a long tradition of democracy. The Center for Media, Data and Society at the Central European University, Budapest, and SHARE Foundation, Novi Sad, are launching a “hybrid-style” course to tackle the challenges that come with publishing in the public interest. Applications for this intensive two-day workshop in Belgrade are open until 31 March.

Watch and share this video that explains which ones of your rights and freedoms are under attack by the Article 13 of the new European copyright proposal https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAcTeYtUzQY, and call the European Parliament to appeal for a meaningful copyright reform!

Recommended action

Apply now for a youth seminar close to Sarajevo (24-30 April 2017) and help turn activists into Digital Rights Activists. The programme will be highly interactive and includes discussions on how the online security discourse impacts fundamental rights as well as hands-on practical sessions.

Recommended action

A joint survey by StartPage, StartMail and EDRi members Digitalcourage (DE) and epicenter.works (AT) asks users in Germany, Austria and Switzerland to give their opinion on privacy and surveillance. The survey is to be run annually to accompany Data Privacy Day on 28 January. This year's survey will run until Tuesday, 24 January, with some results to be published on Data Privacy Day, and others in the time beyond. The hope is to give users a voice in the ongoing debate on whether increased state surveillance and weakened protections on commercial data processing are in the public interest.

Recommended reading

Recommended action

Ever wondered how lobbyists get what they want? One way is by repeating buzzwords and mantras that create fear, uncertainty and doubt in the minds of policy-makers. Now you can become a lobbyist, with our special artificial unintelligence lobby-letter-creation-tool!

Recommended action

EU telecom regulators are finalising their net neutrality guidelines. You have until 18 July to respond to the public consultation, to send your message to support a free, innovative, and open internet!

Recommended action

Help the Body of European Regulators of Electronic Communications (BEREC) to finalise their guidelines on net neutrality! Go to SaveTheInternet.eu and send a message to support a free, innovative open internet. The consultation is open until 18 July.

European Digital Rights fights for your right to privacy, freedom of expression, modernisation of copyright rules, legal protection for net neutrality and against new European proposals for mass surveillance. Our work is only possible with the continued financial support of donors like you!

Recommended action

The EU Copyright framework is a failure for citizens and for creators. The upcoming copyright reform gives the opportunity to fix this. Follow the Copyfails campaign on our website and using the hashtag #fixcopyright on Twitter! Let's bring copyright to the 21st century!

Recommended action

The EU Regulation contains good principles to ensure that you can connect to any other point on the net without discrimination. However, some parts of the regulation could be abused to undermine net neutrality. The legislators decided to leave the responsibility for claryifing the uncertainties of the text to the telecoms regulators.

"Internet users should be in charge of their Internet connections. Instead, however, Internet access providers increasingly undermine this expectation and limit our online communications and behaviour. They do this, for example, by blocking or restricting access to certain kinds of online services, content and applications. The “Respect My Net” platform will allow individuals to report such abusive behaviour by Internet access providers."

Recommended action

EDRi's tool to assist citizens to respond to the public consultation on the evaluation and modernisation of the legal framework for the enforcement of “intellectual property rights” (IPR).
This consultation covers how companies should or should not interfere with your communications online - for example by removing your online content in case it might include copyrighted material.
The deadline to submit responses using this tool is 10 April. However, you can use the Commission's tool to respond until 15 April 2016.

The EU Regulation contains good principles to ensure that you can connect to any other point on the net without discrimination. However, some parts of the regulation could be abused to undermine net neutrality. The legislators decided to leave the responsibility for claryifing the uncertainties of the text to the telecoms regulators.

"Internet users should be in charge of their Internet connections. Instead, however, Internet access providers increasingly undermine this expectation and limit our online communications and behaviour. They do this, for example, by blocking or restricting access to certain kinds of online services, content and applications. The “Respect My Net” platform will allow individuals to report such abusive behaviour by Internet access providers."

Recommended action

"Internet users should be in charge of their Internet connections. Instead, however, Internet access providers increasingly undermine this expectation and limit our online communications and behaviour. They do this, for example, by blocking or restricting access to certain kinds of online services, content and applications. The “Respect My Net” platform will allow individuals to report such abusive behaviour by Internet access providers."

EDRi's tool to assist citizens to respond to the public consultation on the evaluation and modernisation of the legal framework for the enforcement of “intellectual property rights” (IPR). The deadline to submit responses using this tool is 7 April. However, you can use the Commission's tool to respond until 15 April 2016.

Recommended action

"Internet users should be in charge of their Internet connections. Instead, however, Internet access providers increasingly undermine this expectation and limit our online communications and behaviour. They do this, for example, by blocking or restricting access to certain kinds of online services, content and applications. The “Respect My Net” platform will allow individuals to report such abusive behaviour by Internet access providers."

"The Open Web Fellows program — a collaboration between the Ford Foundation and Mozilla — is an international leadership initiative that brings together the best emerging technology talent and civil society organizations to protect the open Web."
Applications will close on 20 March – watch Mozilla’s website for updates.

"The European Commission seeks stakeholders' views on the areas of work of the future cybersecurity public-private partnership as well as on potential additional policy measures that could stimulate the European cybersecurity industry. The consultation is open until 11 March 2016."

EDRi's tool to assist citizens to respond to the public consultation on the evaluation and modernisation of the legal framework for the enforcement of “intellectual property rights” (IPR). The deadline to submit responses using this tool is 7 April. However, you can use the Commission's tool to respond until 15 April 2016.

Recommended action

"The European Commission seeks stakeholders' views on the areas of work of the future cybersecurity public-private partnership as well as on potential additional policy measures that could stimulate the European cybersecurity industry. The consultation is open until 11 March 2016."

EDRi's tool to assist citizens to respond to the public consultation on the evaluation and modernisation of the legal framework for the enforcement of “intellectual property rights” (IPR). The deadline to submit responses using this tool is 7 April. However, you can use the Commission's tool to respond until 15 April 2016.

Recommended action

"The Open Web Fellows program — a collaboration between the Ford Foundation and Mozilla — is an international leadership initiative that brings together the best emerging technology talent and civil society organizations to protect the open Web."

Applications will open on 1 February and close on 20 March – watch Mozilla’s website for updates.

Recommended reading

Recommended action

Led by our member "Access Now" the petition "Security for all" was launched on Monday, accompanying an open letter to the world's governments. The petition can be signed by organizations, individuals and companies.

Registration for Privacy Camp 2016 is open until the 22 January 2016.
The event is free to attend but pre-registration is required as space is limited. Please RSVP to Imge.Ozcan@vub.ac.be.
Please note that priority will be given to members of NGOs and civil rights

Recommended action

The European institutions and international policy-making bodies frequently organise consultations, which are open not only to industry but also to civil society and individuals. These are valuable opportunities to shape policy in a positive way, from the outset rather than needing to take to the streets when the wrong policy is developed based on bad analysis.

Recommended action

Help refugees to access the Internet, to stay in touch relatives and friends abroad, read the news from their homecountry, use translation services, get informed about their new city, it's laws and their rights.

European Digital Rights fights for your right to privacy, freedom of expression, modernisation of copyright rules, legal protection for net neutrality and against new European proposals for mass surveillance. Our work is only possible with the continued financial support of donors like you!

Recommended action

European Digital Rights fights for your right to privacy, freedom of expression, modernisation of copyright rules, legal protection for net neutrality and against new European proposals for mass surveillance. Our work is only possible with the continued financial support of donors like you!

Recommended action

European Digital Rights fights for your right to privacy, freedom of expression, modernisation of copyright rules, legal protection for net neutrality and against new European proposals for mass surveillance. Our work is only possible with the continued financial support of donors like you!

15.07.2015 TTIP Stakeholders event, round 10

13.08.2015 Chaos Communication Camp

03.09.2015 Das ABC des Freien Wissens

We are celebrating the 300th edition of EDRi-gram! This special edition includes articles from the brightest stars in the digital rights universe, reflecting on the potential future threats and opportunities for digital civil rights in 10 years.

Recommended action

European Digital Rights fights for your right to privacy, freedom of expression, modernisation of copyright rules, legal protection for net neutrality and against new European proposals for mass surveillance. Our work is only possible with the continued financial support of donors like you!

Recommended action

Censoring links breaks the Internet. Key public officials are about to make a decision that could block your ability to link to your favourite content and services. Tell decision makers to stop new regulations that aim to restrict our right to link.

Recommended action

Answer the European Ombudsman's public consultation in relation to the transparency of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations. To get inspired, read EDRi-member FFII's response (draft version) here: http://people.ffii.org/~ante/ttip/FFII-Ombudsman-TTIP-consultation.html.

Recommended action

Diego Gomez, a Colombian graduate student is facing up to eight years in prison for posting research results online. Academic research should be free to access and available under an open license that would legally enable the kind of sharing that is so crucial for enabling scientific progress.

Recommended action

Answer to a public consultation on investment protection and Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) in the Transatlantic Trade and Partnership Agreement (TTIP) by 6 July! EDRi's answering guide takes you through the consultation and helps you answer the questions asked by the European Commission.

Answer to a public consultation on investment protection and investor-to-state dispute settlement (ISDS) in the Transatlantic Trade and Partnership Agreement (TTIP) by 6 July! EDRi is currently preparing an answering guide that will soon be published on our website.

Recommended action

The time has come to make your vote count! If you haven't signed up yet, do it now, check which candidate in your region supports the Charter, and go and vote in the European elections this week, to make sure your digital civil rights will be defended for the next five years!

Recommended action

If you are running as candidate for the European election, to join the 322 candidates who have already signed the ten-point Charter, send email to sign at wepromise.eu. Citizens, promise to vote for candidates who have signed!

Privacy Badger is a browser add-on, for Firefox and Chrome, launched by EDRi member the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), that stops advertisers and other third-party trackers from secretly tracking where you go and what pages you look at on the web.

Recommended action

If you are running as candidate for the European election, to join the 188 candidates who have already signed the ten-point Charter, send email to sign at wepromise.eu. Citizens, promise to vote for candidates who have signed!

Recommended action

If you are running as candidate for the European election, to join the 133 candidates who have already signed the ten-point Charter, send email to sign at wepromise.eu. Citizens, promise to vote for candidates who have signed!

Recommended action

The European Commission is thinking about the future of copyright in the
EU, and your input can push them into the right direction.
New deadline: 5.03.2014
http://youcan.fixcopyright.eu/
Or answer just the four questions:
https://www.openrightsgroup.org/campaigns/tell-europe-your-views-on-copyright
Answer in Polish
http://konsultacje.prawokultury.pl/pl/

Wepromise.eu - Vote for your digital rights!
- if you are a candidate, promise to respect the Charter and send an
email to sign at wepromise.eu
- if you are a citizen, promise to vote: http://wepromise.eu

EDRi member Bits of Freedom (Netherlands) is looking for an experienced
legal professional who is specialised in digital civil rights and would
like to join the fight for Internet freedom.
More information (only in Dutch):

Recommended action

If you are interested in privacy and surveillance then please take 15 minutes or less to fill up the questionnaire below.

This survey is part of RESPECT – a collaborative project with
researchers from 21 institutions in 15 countries, co-funded by the
European Union under the FP7 programme. As a multilingual web-based
questionnaire, it aims to gather the views of citizens from all
countries of the EU about the cost, convenience and success of
surveillance in the reduction, detection and prosecution of crimes.

The project results will be put in the public domain on the RESPECT
website in 2015 and the raw data itself would be put in the public domain for all to use in 2017.

All responses for the survey are anonymous and no personal details such as your name, e-mail address or IP address will be processed.

Recommended action

The Assises de la Justice - a forum on EU justice policies - seeks to generate ideas which will contribute directly to shaping the European Union's justice policy over the coming years. The Commission is looking for contributions from anyone with an interest in the issues which will be discussed during the conference, and more broadly on the future justice policy of the European Union.

You are invited to submit your contributions to this debate until the end of 2013. In order to feed the debate during the Assises de la justice, preliminary contributions should be submitted by Monday 11 November.

See also discussion paper on fundamental rights:
http://ec.europa.eu/justice/events/assises-justice-2013/files/fundamental_rights_en.pdf

"We are raising money for prizes and asking for preparing new works regarding the future of copyright. The work may be of any kind (text, video, audio), and of any genre (i.e. legal analysis, dystopia or utopia story, educational video – sky is the limit here), but it must address the general subject of the Future of Copyright. The deadline for submitting the works is 1st of July 2013, and the deadline for those who want to contribute financial through indieggogo is 7th of July."

Recommended action

Legal, illegal, whatever? Provocative privacy game “Data Dealer” released!
"Data Dealer" is a satirical online game about collecting and selling personal data. Players run all kinds of companies and online ventures - from dating sites and loyalty card systems to search engines and their own social web - and ruthlessly sell private information to clients of all kinds. Their growing data empires have to be defended against various threats, including competing players trying to hack into their databases, complaining citizens, critical media and pesky privacy activists. Data Dealer is a non-profit project, released under a Creative Commons license and based on HTML5 instead of Flash.

Recommended action

In 30 countries around the world, activists are celebrating Open Standards on today's Document Freedom Day, an annual campaign to promote Open Standards. More than 50 groups are hosting events around the world, from Brussels to Nicaragua to Taiwan.

The Leveson regulations are being applied to UK websites – in ways that could catch more or less anyone who publishes a blog. Ordinary bloggers could be threatened with exemplary damages and costs. If this happens, small website publishers will face terrible risks, or burdensome regulation – and many may simply stop publishing.

UK: Launch of medConfidential, a campaign organisation fighting for patient privacy
Medical confidentiality in England is under unprecedented threat. New legislation that comes into force next month will permit the upload of identifiable patient data directly from family doctors' records to central systems, from which it will be sold and made available to researchers and private companies. Other developments include the creation of online patient records, and a proposal to create shared record systems across health and social care.

Recommended action

On 24 January 2013, EDRi, Privacy International, EPIC and Bits of Freedom launched The Brussels Privacy Declaration during the Computers, Privacy and Data Protection Conference (CPDP) in Brussels.

The declaration describes the concerns of civil society organizations as well as of academics and citizens about the data protection law reform and calls upon the European Parliament as and national governments to safeguards citizens' privacy rights.
The declaration has been sent to MEPs and the European Commission on 28 January 2013 (Data Protection Day).

Recommended action

This article is also available in Deutsch: Mitmachen!
https://www.unwatched.org/EDRigram_10.24_Mitmachen?pk_campaign=edri&pk_kwd=20121219

Europe vs. Facebook will soon reach the point where the Irish data protection authority will make a final and legally binding decision, effecting every user of Facebook. It is likely that the outcome will not really be in favour of the users but in favour of Facebook.

Your donation can make a difference beyond the individual case of Facebook. The case has good chances to become a landmark decision, influencing the future of online privacy in Europe and the world.

Recommended action

This article is also available in Deutsch: Mitmachen!
https://www.unwatched.org/EDRigram_10.20_Mitmachen?pk_campaign=edri&pk_kwd=20121024

Islands of Resilience Comparative Model for Energy, Connectivity and Jurisdiction Realizing European ICT possibilities through a case study of Iceland Request for comments will remain open until 1 November 2012

Recommended action

This article is also available in Deutsch: Mitmachen!
https://www.unwatched.org/EDRigram_10.15_Mitmachen?pk_campaign=twun&pk_kwd=20120801

The editors are looking for short (up to 5,000 words) articles on the technical, social, and political mechanisms and impacts of Internet censorship and control.They are soliciting both technical and social science articles, and especially encourage those that combine the two.
Deadline for a brief description of the article: 15 August 2012

Recommended action

Soon, the European Parliament is going to vote on the PNR Agreement with the US. The rapporteur, MEP Sophie in't Veld (ALDE), recommended to reject the Agreement in her draft report for the civil liberties committee (LIBE).

Therefore, we need to contact our MEPs now, especially from the S&D group, and urge them to support MEP in't Velds recommendation. You can use our briefing paper (see link below) or other useful analysis such as from the Article 29 Working Group, NoPNR, Papers Please etc. Below you will also find a link to the list of MEPs in the LIBE Committee that should be contacted before the vote in the Committee which is planned for the 20 March.

CPDP 2012 takes place during a significant stage of the revision of the EU legal framework on data protection, thus several panels will focus on the review and the latest legislative proposals. More than 20 panels will be organized on key issues such as geolocalization, e-identity and e-management, enforcement of copyright protection, surveillance in the workplace, accountability and communication of privacy. In addition, there will be workshops and special sessions on topics such as eDiscovery, privacy impact assessments and "privacy by design", smart metering and transborder data flows. Since 2012 was declared the European Year of Active Ageing, three sessions will be devoted to the theme of Ageing and New Technologies.

A new European Commissions' project will produce 3 sector-specific guides on the Corporate Responsibility to Respect Human Rights.The choice regarding which three sectors will be the included in this project, based on suggestions by stakeholders, will be made by the Commission and announced in February 2012. Therefore, it is very important that you give your input in order to highlight the importance of defending human rights in the digital environment.

All stakeholders are invited to submit their suggestions for the choice of sectors by emailing sectorguidance@ihrb.org by:6pm CET on 27 January 2012.

Recommended action

CSISAC, the Civil Society Information Society Advisory Council to the OECD, of which EDRI is a founding and steering committee member, is looking for its Community Manager and Liaison to OECD. If you are a brilliant and experienced community manager, people-motivator, public-interest advocate, while being a diplomat, knowledgeable and showing strong interest in policy related to the internet, telecommunications and information society, check the job offer and full job description at

Recommended action

Austrians: sign the petition asking the Austrian Parliament to oblige the government to engage against the data retention directive on EU level, and to evaluate the whole set of existing anti-terror legislation. Set up by Austrian AKVorrat. (only in German)

The award, to be presented at the annual Computers, Data Protection and Privacy (CPDP) Conference held in Brussels at the end of January 2012, will be given to the authors of the best multidisciplinary paper that describes new ideas in privacy and data protection. Eligible papers need to have been published or accepted for publication between 1 November 2010 and 31 October 2011.

Recommended action

Survey that gathers the views of internet users from all EU countries on the use of personal information, privacy, and giving consent online. This survey is part of the CONSENT project - a collaborative project co-funded by the European Commission under the FP7 programme.

Recommended action

The European Union decided that 80% of all users are to have a smart meter in 2020. These instruments will then measure the consumption of gas and electricity. They can be integrated in a smart grid, a network of users and producers that ensures better tuning of supply and demand. When solar generators produce electricity, the washing machine can best do its work.

This part sounds good? What about civil and digital rights? The issue is related since there are also potentially some undesirable effects attached to this new technology:

Privacy: The government, electricity producers and/or others may gain access to detailed information about our energy use. The government may use this information for investigations about when you were home, if you have a new partner, if you lead a healthy life. You name it. Energy companies may decide to target you with specific advertisements or sell the information. In California, the energy company PG&E, smart meter producer GE and Google work together. Also, criminals can use the information to build a profile and ultimately use it for identity-theft, a once science fiction nightmare that for many became a reality. Look it up if identity-theft is an abstract word for you.

Security: This is closely linked to privacy. A leaky system will reveal privacy data. In addition, the smart meter might give access to equipment inside the house like the connected PC. Hacking the smart grid can also give access to the light switch for the grid. By the way: smart meters can cut off your energy remotely.

Electrosmog: With the authorities (WHO, Council of Europe) warning against electromagnetic radiation, the dangers of wireless technology might finally be taken seriously. Might. A smart meter can be equipped with wireless technology, like GPRS, "RF-meshed" or a separate, more secure protocol/frequency. Depending on the type of network and the information exchange rate, the radiation can be more or less serious for the health of humans, animals and plants. There is an alternative using wired technology. It's called PLC or Power Line Carrier. Italy has already implemented this system.

These are a few of the issues that surround smart meters. We're in the early stages still. In Brussels, the representatives from all EU countries meet to decide on the technology and the demands for smart meters, including the rules and regulations.

The zeal to implement the smart grid is staggering. For the Netherlands the whole issue started with a law proposal that would force every user to accept the smart meter. This came out when Vrijbit, a Dutch privacy organisation, and the Dutch Consumer NGO (Consumentenbond) read the small print. Those who would refuse the smart meter could face up to 6 months imprisonment. This brutal force was reason for the Senate to reject the law proposal. The revised law passed early this year.

Now the Dutch pilot-implementation is planned by the start of 2012, comprising 400 000 smart meters in 2 years. After the evaluation in the parliament (end 2013), the final roll-out would comprise 7 million smart meters. If it all satisfies the needs, i.e. a lot can still change.

In a recent meeting with people from the Ministry of Economic Affairs we discussed privacy aspects of the smart meter. They made it clear that if issues like privacy are to be taken seriously, European privacy organisations need to team up. If pressure is applied now, if representatives are compelled to take this issue seriously, then this increases the chance for a better smart meter. From a manufacturing viewpoint, special wishes will only be turned into actual product features if there is sufficient market for these.

I am already member of Vrijbit, a Dutch privacy organisation. Other EDRi members are also interested in smart meters as well. Are you a member of a privacy organisation and interested in smart meters? Do you know people who are? Let us establish a network to ensure our demands on privacy are known in Brussels. Let's team up!

Recommended action

Europeana will organise a series of hackathons to showcase the potential of the API usage for data providers, partners and end-users. The hackathons are informal workshops bringing together competent and enthusiastic software developers to build cool projects within a day or two (sketches, prototypes, even working applications).

Recommended action

The Council of Europe's Expert Committee on New Media launched a consultation on its draft recommendations on search engines and social networking services, including guidelines
Deadline for sending your comments:18 March 2011

Recommended action

With new data protection challenges arising everyday, the Convention is being overhauled to meet new realities and time is now ripe to think about modernising it. The technological developments of the information and communication society as well as the globalisation of exchanges lead to unexplored challenges and potential new risks for the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms. Is Convention 108's protection still in line with today's needs in respect of data protection or should it be modified and complemented in order to better satisfy the legitimate expectations of individuals and concerned professionals?